A life spent without knowing one’s deepest beliefs is a life spent without knowing oneself. Discovering our deepest beliefs and passions is the elixir that gives meaning and purpose to our lives.  Life’s Holy Grail is not hidden behind the mythical fountain of youth; but rather, it lies in the ability to act upon our deepest beliefs, while we pursue our passions. Unfortunately, discovering our deepest beliefs and passions does not happen by itself, or by chance; it demands courage, reflection and a willingness to question everything we have been taught.  We must be willing to question our preconceived notions and take the time to search for the truth, without any biases, prejudices and external influences.  The best time to do this is during the years of adolescence — those fleeting years when we live free and innocent lives, practicing the values of valor and rebellion — before the dogmas and conventions of society mold us into conformity.

This book is meant for those young and inquisitive minds that are searching for the truth in an age of overwhelming complexity and contradiction.  We live in an age of information and technology, when answers to nearly everything we want to know — whether it is related to Science, Religion, History, or Philosophy — is available at our fingertips.  Yet the more information we are exposed to, the more confused we seem to become.  If you are yearning to read a book that captures the essence of the grand story of humankind — its origins, its evolution, and its timeless quest for meaning — then this is a must-read book for you.  The conventional answers to the age-old philosophical questions about who we are, where we came from, and where we are heading — have long been distorted by the so-called intellectual elite who desperately want to influence our opinions for ulterior motives.  It is time to re-examine those answers through the clear lens of logic and reason.

This book brings together the essential knowledge needed to rediscover our beliefs and reignite our passions. It delves into the latest scientific discoveries of our modern era and revisits the defining moments of history — from the dawn of creation to the 21st century.  It chronologically maps the long evolutionary journey of human civilization that unfolded over millions of years.  Each of the forty chapters of this book should be viewed as a dot on a vast map that describes the history of our world.  How we choose to connect those dots is entirely up to us.  But once we connect those dots — the picture that emerges should offer a deeper understanding of the world we live in, and our place within it.

There is a well-known story about a group of scientists who conducted an experiment by placing five monkeys in a cage. The story was first published in a book called Competing for the Future by Gary Hamel and C. K. Prahalad, and the story goes something like this:

•  A group of scientists placed five monkeys in a cage, and in the middle of it, they put a ladder with a bunch of bananas on top. Every time a monkey tried to climb up the ladder, the scientists soaked all the monkeys with cold water.
• After getting soaked by a few cold showers, every time a monkey tried to go up the ladder, the rest of the monkeys beat it up; just to make sure none of the others had to experience cold showers.
• In time, all the monkeys learned their lesson, and none of the monkeys dared to climb up the ladder, regardless of how many bananas were on top.
• The scientists then decided to replace one of the five monkeys with a new one. The first thing the new monkey tried to do was climb up the ladder to get to the bananas on top. Immediately, the other four monkeys beat up the new monkey; thinking that they might all get soaked with cold water again. After a few beatings, the new monkey learned its lesson, and stopped climbing the ladder, even though it never knew why.
• Now the scientists added a second new monkey into the cage and replaced another one of the original five monkeys. As soon as the second new monkey arrived, the same thing happened. When the second new monkey tried to climb up the ladder, all the other monkeys beat it up, thinking that they would get soaked with cold water. Interestingly enough, the first new monkey participated in the beatings of the second new monkey, without really knowing why.
• The scientists then replaced a third monkey in the cage, and the same events followed. Later, a fourth monkey was replaced, and the same events were repeated.
• Finally, the fifth and last monkey was replaced with a new one; and none of the original monkeys that were soaked with cold water were left in the cage.
• Now, the five new monkeys in the cage continued to beat up anyone that tried to climb the ladder, even though they never received a cold shower themselves; and they had no idea why they were beating each other up.
• At this point of the experiment, if it was possible for the scientists to ask the new monkeys why they were beating up anyone trying to climb the ladder, their obvious answer would be: “We don’t know - that’s just how things are done around here.”